Responding to Democrats' plans to essentially cut them out of the House lawmaking process for at least the next month, some Republican members of Congress are pushing for a "Minority Bill of Rights" that would ensure their voices are heard.
The move comes after soon-to-be House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced plans to bypass the usual bill-making process -- committee work-ups of legislation and opportunities for the minority party to offer amendments -- in an effort to fast-track an agenda that will include increased federal funding of embryonic stem-cell research and a hike in the U.S. minimum wage.
The decision flies in the face of promises Pelosi made during the campaign to run the most open House in history.
In response, a trio of GOP legislators has drafted a Minority Bill of Rights modeled after a similar document Pelosi created when she was the House's minority leader after the 2004 elections. The document calls for reinstatement of the traditional policymaking apparatus -- meaning no bills come to the floor for a vote without representatives from both parties having had a chance to shape the legislation.
"We are simply asking that the rhetoric of Minority Leader Pelosi matches the actions of Speaker Pelosi, said Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., one of the drafters of the Minority Bill of Rights. The others are Reps. Eric Cantor, R-Va., and Tom Price, R-Ga.
Democrats, though, seemed disinclined to consider the GOP's concerns. A Pelosi spokesman said his boss's most important concern is getting some bills passed in the first 100 hours of the new Congress.
"The priority," he said, "is to get things done."
